The Works of William Mason :: :: University of Virginia Library

Again the day returns of holy rest
Which, when he made the world, Jehovah blest;
When, like his own, he bade our labour cease,
And all be piety, and all be peace.

While impious men despise the sage decree,
From “vain deceit, and false philosophy;”
Let us its wisdom own, its blessings feel,
Receive with gratitude, perform with zeal.

Let us devote this consecrated day
To learn his will, and all we learn obey;
In pure Religion's hallow'd duties share,
And join in penitence, and join in prayer.

So shall the God of Mercy pleas'd receive
That only tribute, man has power to give;
So shall he hear, while fervently we raise
Our choral harmony in hymns of praise.

CHORUS.

Father of Heaven, in whom our hopes confide,
Whose pow'r defends us, and whose precepts guide;
In life our guardian, and in death our friend
Glory supreme be thine till time shall end!

468

HYMN BEFORE EVENING SERVICE.

Soon will the evening star with silver ray
Shed its mild lustre on this sacred day;
Resume we then, ere sleep and silence reign,
The rites that holiness and Heav'n ordain.

Still let each awful truth our thoughts engage,
That shines reveal'd on Inspiration's page:
Nor those blest hours in vain amusements waste
Which all, who lavish, shall lament at last.

Here humbly let us hope our Maker's smile
Will crown with meet success our weekly toil;
And here, on each returning Sabbath join
In prayer, in penitence, and praise divine.

CHORUS.

Father of Heaven, in whom our hopes confide,
Whose pow'r defends us, and whose precepts guide;
In life our guardian, and in death our friend,
Glory supreme be thine till time shall end!

This and the foregoing Hymn are adapted to an elegant movement of Pleyel, in his Opera twenty-third. They have been also set to music by Dr. Burney and Mr. M. Camidge.

469

MORNING HYMN.

I

That, from refreshing sleep I rise
With health and reason blest,
Accept, great God, the sacrifice
Of thanks that warms my breast.

II

And O! may thy assisting grace
Conduct me through the day,
Lest Passion tempt, or Vice debase,
Or Vanity betray.

III

Correct each thought, each wish control
Save those thy laws approve,
And pour on my repentant soul
Thy pardon, peace, and love.

470

EVENING HYMN.

I

To sleep, Death's image, I resign
This night my pillow'd head,
Lord! let thy providence divine
From danger guard my bed.

II

But should I sleep to wake no more,
Or, with to-morrow's sun,
Have life thy goodness to adore,
Father, thy will be done.

III

This only be my constant prayer,
That, when Life's pulse shall cease,
My Soul, redeem'd by thee, may share
Thy pardon, love, and peace.

These two last Hymns and the following Psalms versified are now first published.

471

PSALM I.

Happy the man who scorns to join
That impious race who truth deride,
Who wisely makes the law divine
His nightly study, daily guide.
Like some fair tree, ordain'd to shade
The margin of a plenteous stream,
Sublime he waves his leafy head,
His boughs with fruit maturely teem.
Compar'd with his, each sickly bloom
Of Vice and Folly swift decay,
The passing gale conveys their doom,
And whirls them, like the dust, away.
The just, who make their God their guide,
His presence only shall enjoy,
The impious, who his laws deride,
His wrath vindictive shall destroy.

472

PSALM VIII.

Guardian and Governor divine!
Who built thy glory's radiant shrine
Sublime above the solar blaze;
On earth how excellent thy name,
Ev'n infant tongues, the foe to shame,
Thou arm'st with power to hymn thy praise.
Dread Maker! when my eyes behold
Yon moon, yon planets girt in gold,
O what is man! entranc'd I cry,
O what his son! that he should rise
So near the inmates of the skies,
So near angelic dignity?
Thou bid'st creation own his sway,
The beasts, the birds his power obey,
To him the savage race be tame,
The sea her scaly troops resign—
Guardian and Governor divine,
On earth how excellent thy name!

473

PSALM XV.

Lord! who may to thy love aspire,
Or hope to join thy heav'nly choir,
But he who rests on thee his trust,
Whose thoughts are pure, whose actions just,
Whose word is truth, whose open heart
Disdains the mean disguise of art,
Who, swift to praise, as slow to blame,
Guards as his own his neighbour's fame.
Despising earthly pomp and state,
He knows the good alone are great,
If Danger wakes, or Justice sleeps,
Alike, if given, his word he keeps.
No gains luxurious swell his hoard,
No guiltless blood embrues his sword,
Whom no rewards to vice allure
He, walking wisely, walketh sure.

474

PART OF PSALM XVIII.

[_]

(FROM V. 6 TO V. 11.)

Beset with snares, oppress'd by foes,
My soul implor'd Jehovah's aid,
He heard; and to avenge my cause
The rigour of his wrath display'd.

Earth trembled at her Maker's ire,
Her mountains to their centre shook,
His mouth breath'd forth consuming fire,
His nostrils, clouds of livid smoke.

Downward he rush'd, in flame array'd,
He bound the heav'ns, and at his nod
Darkness and Night their horrors spread
Beneath the footstep of the God.

By Cherubs borne, in glory shrined
He rode, and mock'd the lightning's pace,
On ev'ry wing of ev'ry wind
He flew, and fill'd the whole of space.

475

PSALM XLIII.

See how, assail'd by Fraud, and Force,
Thy suppliant servant lies;
With justice arm'd, to check their course,
My God, my Guardian rise!

Send forth thy Light, thy Truth reveal,
And teach my steps to gain
The summit of that sacred hill
Where shines fair Salem's fane.

There at thy altar, placed among
Thy consecrated choir,
My voice shall pour the sacred song,
My hand shall sweep the lyre.

When hopes like these, my Soul, are thine
Why bear'st thou Sorrow's load?
'Rouse thee! and hail with hymns divine
Thy Guardian, and thy God.

476

PSALM LXVII.

Far as extend the beams of day
Thou, Lord! thy mercy shalt display,
That all its saving pow'r may know,
And ev'ry tongue with praises flow.

Thy statutes learn'd, our pardon seal'd,
The wonders of thy grace reveal'd,
In every heart thy love shall glow,
From ev'ry tongue thy praises flow.

Yes, pitying Judge, paternal King,
To thee a grateful world shall bring,
From ev'ry zone that binds her sphere,
A harvest rich of Faith sincere.

477

PSALM LXX.

Behold me, Lord, forlorn, distress'd,
By Rage pursued, by Power oppress'd,
By friends forsaken, foes dismay'd,
Divine Redeemer, haste thy aid.

From thee, just Arbiter of all!
Send forth thy vengeance, and appal
The sons of insolence and wrong,
Of vengeful heart and taunting tongue.

From thee, mild Minister of Grace,
Send joy to thy selected race,
Who warm'd by rapture from above
Shall magnify the name they love.

To me, forlorn, distress'd, dismay'd,
Send swiftly thy celestial aid,
And bid my soul, from sorrows free,
Divine Redeemer, haste to thee.

478

PSALM XCIII.

Jehovah reigns! his throne sublime,
Beyond the bounds of space and time,
Is fix'd on its eternal base:
Rob'd in majestic state, he reigns,
His power this globe of earth sustains,
And mid his wonders mark'd its place.

Lo, when the floods exalt their waves,
When Ocean roars through all his caves
He speaks; no more the tempest swells.
O first, O universal cause!
Eternal Justice fram'd thy laws;
Eternal Mercy with thee dwells.

479

PSALM C.

Let Earth, through all her realms, rejoice,
And ev'ry land and language raise
Its loftiest powers of verse and voice,
To sound our great Creator's praise.

For not from choice or chance we came,
But from his all-commanding word,
And he that form'd, supports our frame,
At once our Shepherd, and our God.

Haste then, where'er his temples stand,
And through the hallow'd portals throng,
There strike the harp with raptur'd hand,
There lift the universal song.

His truth, his mercy be the theme,
Which, unconfined by time or place,
Their blessings pour, in endless stream,
From age to age, from race to race.

480

A COMPRESSED METRICAL VERSION OF PSALM CIX.

I

God of my praise, proclaim my wrongs;
For well thou know'st this wounded heart
Has foster'd those, whose faithless tongues
Their rancour at thy servant dart,
And load me, while in prayer I mourn,
With curses, calumny, and scorn.

II

Seize him, some impious Judge (they cry)
Arraign him, Satan! on his head
Let vengeance fall, and instantly
Exalt an alien in his stead;
While mendicants, and far from home,
His widow'd wife and children roam.

481

III

Extortion, Rapine, ruthless pair,
Be yours to seize his wide domain,
Nor lenient Pity drop a tear
For him, or for his orphan train:
And, 'till oblivion blots his name,
Be his to bear his Parent's shame.

IV

For why? rejoicing to distress,
He vex'd the poor, the helpless slew;
Eager to curse, yet slow to bless;
Let curses then his steps pursue,
Like water through his entrails spread,
Like oil his every bone pervade.

V

Be these his vesture, these enclose
Each limb, and clinging gird him round,
'Tis thus, great God, my vengeful foes
With insults dire thy servant wound:
That servant who, on suppliant knee,
Father of mercy, mourns to thee.

VI

O hear, and heal my bleeding heart,
Ere, like the locust swept away
By sudden storm, I hence depart,
Or flitting shade at close of day:

482

For see, through fasting how I pine;
How swift my health and strength decline!

VII

All that behold me, shake in scorn
Their head; but thou, benignant Lord,
Canst save the wretch howe'er forlorn;
Make then my foes thy power record;
Prove that their curse can ne'er oppress
The Man thy mercy deigns to bless.

VIII

Cloth'd with confusion, let them fly;
While I in grateful hymns prolong
Thy praise, and fir'd with holy joy
Hail thee, the Sovereign of my song,
Whose arm shall save, whose shield secure
From wrongs the righteous and the poor.

For a defence of this interpretation, see Dr. Sykes's introduction to his paraphrase on the Hebrews.—Mr. Green's translation of the Psalms.—Dr. Lowth and Kennicot, in a note (in loco) to Merrick's Version, though Merrick himself translates it otherwise. See also an Italian Version of Mattei, who follows the interpretation of Marino. —See these proofs collected in the Notes to Mr. Keat's Sermon, preached at Chelsea, April 6th, 1794.

July 1795.

This title is employed to distinguish this mode of versifying both from literal translation and paraphrase. See Essay on Psalmody, page 182.

483

PSALM CXXI.

The hills, the heav'nly hills my eyes
With zeal explore, with joy survey,
Whence God, who form'd the world and skies,
Supports my feet, directs my way.
To those who his wise dictates keep,
That God, that guardian ne'er will sleep.

No: ever wakeful, ever kind,
He still will watch his favor'd race,
No change of seasons they shall find,
For, shaded by his saving grace,
No noontide blaze shall scorch their head,
No midnight chill infest their bed.

Where'er they move, where'er they rest,
His smile of mercy, strength of pow'r,
Through life, to death, shall shield their breast,
And give new blessings every hour;
Not time itself his love can bound,
It rolls in one eternal round.

484

PSALM CXXVIII.

That Man enjoys his Maker's smile,
Who humble, just, and good,
Contented sees his daily toil
Procure him daily food.
His Wife, like the prolific vine,
With luscious grapes o'erspread,
Whose branches o'er his mansion twine,
Shall bless his nuptial bed;
His Children, like the olives green,
Shall bloom his board around,
While, at their head, he sits serene,
With bliss paternal crown'd.
His race, a long progressive train,
Through ages shall increase,
And, bless'd by Sion's God, remain
Possess'd of Israel's peace.

485

PSALM CXXX.

Sunk in the deep abyss of woe,
To thee, my God! I cry,
O, while my contrite tears o'erflow,
In pity bend thine eye!

For when thy Justice sternly frowns,
Who may behold and live?
But Mercy mild that Justice crowns,
And Mercy must forgive.

Thence, with firm faith, and holy fear,
All impious doubts withdrawn,
I wait thy saving grace to share,
As watchmen wait the dawn.

That faith, that fear, through Israel spread,
Shall dart a cheerful ray,
Till full Redemption, o'er his head,
Diffuse eternal day.

486

PSALM CXXXVII.

(IN ELEGIAC MEASURE.)

Captives of Babylon, we sought the vale,
Where broad Euphrates rolls in crystal state,
Hung our mute harps upon its poplars pale,
And sat, dear Sion, weeping o'er thy fate!
While our proud victors, in opprobrious vein,
Cry'd, Slaves, arise! your silent lyres resume,
And swell your voices with that choral strain,
Which echo'd sweet in Sion's ruin'd dome!
What! to an alien ear, an alien clime,
Shall we repeat Jehovah's hallow'd song?
Ah! sooner than profane that lay sublime,
Cleave to its roots each fibre of our tongue;
Forget, my hand, each warbling chord to sweep,
So prompt thy modulating powers to own,
Or ere my Soul neglects her vows to keep,
To sing in Salem's sacred courts alone.
O think, great God, on Salem's fatal hour,
When hemm'd around by Edom's impious race!
They cried, as they beheld each falling tower,
“Raze, instant raze it to its central base!”

487

Blest be that future foe, by justice led,
Who Israel's woes repeats in Edom's fall,
Wreaks all her wrongs on Babylon's proud head,
And flings her children 'gainst the shatter'd wall.

York, Oct. 26, 1795.

488

PSALM CL

Praise be to God, from earth below
Where'er his temples rise,
Praise in the heav'ns, where Seraphs glow
In holy exstacies.
His power, his might, his deeds divine,
Let sacred verse display,
While strings, and pipes, and timbrels join
Symphonious to the lay.
Fill ye the trumpet's brazen throat,
Awake the living lyre,
While, pealing with majestic note,
The organ leads the choir;
Let cymbals clear, in tuneful strife,
Their strains with louder raise,
And all that breathe the breath of life,
Join in Jehovah's praise.